


Lunch Break

by Lethalfurry



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-03
Updated: 2017-05-03
Packaged: 2018-10-27 09:10:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,421
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10806120
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lethalfurry/pseuds/Lethalfurry
Summary: Akechi makes a visit to Shujin for work, and ends up bumping into Akira.





	Lunch Break

**Author's Note:**

> WE DEM GOROBOYS
> 
> Nothing like not having any fucking internet to make me cram out something out of sheer boredom. I wonder if I didn't make Akira too wordy? Well, please let me know. Enjoy!

“Akechi-kun, exactly how busy are you with the Okumura investigation?” One of Akechi’s superiors asked him.

“Not too much. The others told me to not get too involved in it and focus on my studies for now. Field work would be dangerous after the remarks I made about the Phantom Thieves, haha.” He laughed as he filed away some paperwork. The Detective Prince was most definitely not on one of his brighter days.

“Well, it’s good that they got the rug pulled out from under them, then. I always knew there was something wrong with ‘em! You were right to say what you did, sonny.” The old man grumbled as he drank his coffee. “Don’t you think it’s about time you made a comeback?”

“I’m not too concerned about my popularity. As long as I’m allowed to do my job, I’m satisfied.” Akechi said, not making eye contact. Both him and the police officer thought, in their heads, that this was an incredibly bald-faced lie, but it’s not as if there wasn’t at least SOME truth to it.

“You have to enjoy it while you’re young, though! Ain’t nobody will pay attention to a police officer once he’s in his olden days.” He lectured the young detective. “So just take it from me. How about I make you a deal, hmm?” The officer said. Although Akechi was determined to simply focuso n his paperwork, he knew the officer wouldn’t go away until he at least paid attention to what he was saying, so he turned around.

“Atta boy. You know Shujin Academy, right? Their principal, bless his heart, was real fond of them flashy events and the like. I even hear those kids got to go to Hawaii! Hell, I never even stepped foot out of the country.” He whined to himself, taking a full gulp of the coffee. Akechi, naturally, recognized the school’s name; not just because of the crime investigation related to it, but also from the time one of its students was involved in one of his more enjoyable TV appearances.

“Either way, they’ve been bugging us for a little visit from us since a while ago. We thought they would maybe drop it with the death of their principal, but that’s only made them more eager to get us there, saying the kids need to feel safe again now. And since we weren’t planning for that, we’re a little short-handed…” He let the sentence trail off. Akechi already knew what exactly he meant with this.

“I don’t mind taking care of that.” Akechi replied curtly, smile ever on his face. It was at least slightly more satisfying than more paperwork, and he would get to stretch his legs a little bit.

“I’ll tell you, you’re much better than the other adults in this field.” He patted Akechi’s shoulder. “I’ll give you the schedule in a bit, so you just keep doing you. Thanks for the help.”

“No need to worry. I’m glad I could help.”  He replied, with as flawless of a fake attitude as ever.

\--

After finally emerging from the busy train station, Akira made his way to Shujin, along with many other students. Their pace was like that of a herd; and in that herd, Akira placed himself at the back, walking leisurely. It often allowed him to pick up on a few conversations from others also going their merry way, or those who were hanging by the vending machines.

“I saw the Detective Prince on the train today!” One girl, behind Akira, bragged to her friend.

“What!? Pics or it didn’t happen.”

“Do you think I’m some train molester or something?! You know I can’t do that!”

“If you were dedicated you would.”

“Ah, my fleeting dream with my prince, which no one shall ever believe…must I be such a tragic maiden?” The girl ended the conversation as her friend simply stared at her in disbelief.

“I thought that Akechi kid had it pretty rough, but I guess after Okumura’s death he’s riding on our failure.” Morgana commented, popping his head from Akira’s bag. Not being able to reply to his talking cat in plain sight, Akira simply nodded at him and put him back.

He made his way to his classroom. When he had first arrived to this school, people commented on him wherever he went. As Kamoshida was taken down and other news started spreading, those stares he felt behind his back became weaker, but he still felt them. The only times where absolutely no one noticed him walking down the halls, where no one whispered about him as he passed by, was when _something_ was happening that day at school, be it an announcement, an athletic meet, what have you.

Today was one of these days.

Ann noticed him immediately once he entered the classroom, and as he made his way to his seat, she kept waving at him to come faster. Once he finally sat down, she closed in to whisper.

“Hey hey, did you hear?” She asked as soon as he leaned in. Obviously not knowing, he just sat there, waiting for her to elaborate.

“Apparently the police are coming here. I’m not sure why they’re here, but if it’s related to Okumura, we’ve got to keep smart.” She whispered, and all Akira could do was nod along until Morgana popped his head out of the bag.

“Worrying too much will give you away in the end. Just do as usual and keep a low profile.” Morgana instructed the two teenagers, who just frowned at his suggestion.

“Easy for you to say, people don’t even see you unless you leave the bag!” Ann raised her voice a little bit at Morgana, and a few classmates turned to look. Akira quickly put his arms over the bag.

“See? This is what I mean when you have to keep a low profile.” Morgana teased from the bag. Akira could only frown, while Ann puffed her cheeks.

\--

After that little gossiping session between himself and Ann, the day at school mostly continued as…normal. Or at the very least, as normal as Akira had expected it to be. It’s not as if the classes were quiet; they never were. People were always talking, sometimes in a low voice, sometimes in a high voice, sometimes they were simply chatting through text on their phones. But be it with his eyes or his ears, Akira noticed a few keywords.

“Akechi-kun”

“Detective Prince”

“Police”

“Akechi Goro”

The little conversation that he had heard on his way to school was simply a premonition of what was to come. The amount of “Oh no, the police are here, they’ve come to arrest me! Haha!” comments he had heard through the duration of the day was ridiculous to say the least.

Then, as if to finally put in the finishing blow to this series of unending comments about the police and Akechi, Kawakami cleared her throat at the end of her period.

“Pay attention, now, will you? As I’m sure you all have guessed, we’ve scheduled a visit from a rather popular member of the police force. Once we found out some of our students were getting exploited and blackmailed, we thought something should be done about it so that you could feel safe again, and this was our solution.” Kawakami finished her little speech; she put away a small piece of paper that she most definitely wasn’t reading from. “All of you must already know who he is, so I’ll spare you the introductions. Akechi-kun, you may enter now.” She called out to the figure behind the door.

“Haha, I didn’t think my appearance would cause such a ruckus…” Akechi said as he made his way to the small podium, each of the students in the classroom either gasping or clapping.

“Quiet down, will you? He took time off work to come today, so don’t embarrass him.” Kawakami clapped her hands, calling the class’ attention to scold them. It didn’t really seem to work, but just about everyone was ready to listen to their idol anyway.

“It’s nice to meet you, everyone. I’m Goro Akechi, a detective in the police force. But despite that, I’m still a student, so please don’t feel pressured to act formal around me.” He said in a light, casual tone. But then, as if he remembered something, he continued. “Ah, I’m also a third year, so I won’t mind if you call me ‘senpai’.” He joked, winking at everyone. The class immediately became rowdy again, be it from laughter or squeals, “Ohhhhh”s and “Ahhhh”s to a deafening amount.

“Lately, the town hasn’t felt particularly safe, has it? Thanks to the Phantom Thieves, many criminals have come out from their hiding, but since it wasn’t the police that dealt with them, it makes you a tad worried for today’s police force. High school students such as ourselves have been targeted often by criminals, and with a case happening in this very academy, one can’t help but feel worried that at any point there are criminals in our midst. I feel like it would be rude of me to simply tell all of you to trust in us, so I’d like to teach you a few simple methods of dealing with criminals today.”  He spoke with in an incredibly composed manner. It was obvious that he hadn’t practiced it; it came to him naturally. Not because of his abilities, but from his experience in speaking to an audience. Akira couldn’t help but worry how calculated his words were.

“So, I’d like to start out with a little bit of practice. I’d like two volunteers for this activity. Any who’d like to participate, please raise your hand.” The moment those words came out of his mouth, practically the entire class raised its hand. It was possible to hear the sounds of chairs and tables creaking as some stood up so that their hand would be seen in the sea of volunteers.

“Haha, that’s a little bit more than I had expected. Since it seems most of the class wants to participate, I hope you all don’t mind if I pick someone at random?” Akechi remarked. Most of the students who sat at the front let out a quiet “Tch.” Sound, as they had the advantage at first. Now, not so much.

“Let’s see…the boy over there, please come.” Of course, without any doubt, he picked Akira. After a few seconds that everyone took to process the situation in front of them…

“ _Seriously?!_ ” Ann, Morgana, Kawakami and many other students exclaimed in their thoughts. There were very few problem children in this classroom, and out of all of them, the young detective managed to pick out the one who fit the title the most. Kawakami bit her thumb as she considered if she intervened or not, but before she knew it, Akira was already at the podium along with Akechi.

After that small shock, he picked out yet another student from the classroom. This time, it was a girl, who took a while to understand that she had been picked; but once she did, she did a little fist pump Her two friends, sitting beside her, booed her as she made her way to the podium.

Akira and Akechi both stared at each other in a rather…special way, as they waited to get started.

“I’m glad you agreed to come.” Akechi mouthed with the side of his mouth, pretending not to look at Akira.

“I didn’t know I had a choice.” Akira mouthed back, not really trying to hide it. The detective only giggled in response, covering his mouth with his hand. Making use of that, he cleared his voice.

“We’ll do a little simulation of an event that was very common this summer; being offered a large sum of money in exchange for ‘easy work’.” Akechi explained to the rest of the class, who nodded along. “I would like for Kuru—Er, for the boy to play the man offering money, while the girl plays the role of the victim.” He said, correcting himself mid-sentence. He could only imagine the amount of unwanted attention Akira would receive if they knew that the two were acquaintances, in a very loose term of the word.

“You may start now.”

As soon as Akechi said so, Akira and the other girl took their positions. Each took a deep breath. Akira and the girl both stared at each other’s eyes—Akira knew that he had to start, since he was the one playing the criminal. He wondered exactly what to say and how to act.

“Hey—“

“Akechi-kun, help me!”

…And so the demonstration ended, as the girl ran over to Akechi’s side immediately after Akira opened his mouth.

“…I see you’re both still nervous. Maybe we should switch the roles?”

Once again, Akira and the girl took their positions. Each took a deep breath. Akira and the girl both stared at each other’s eyes.

“You—“

“Akechi-kun, help me~” Akira said as he jumped back and hugged Akechi’s arm.

The entire classroom’s heart skipped a beat. For some it was due to shock, for others…well.

“Would the two of you please take seriously?!” Kawakami scolded Akira and the other girl. The girl was glaring daggers at him, while he had the biggest shit-eating grin as he still refused to let Akechi go; when he finally thought to look at the boy whose arm he was holding, however, he saw a very distinct tint of red.

“O-oh.”

He quickly released Akechi’s arm. He didn’t really mind making a scene in front of the classroom; they were going to talk about him no matter what he did, anyway, so he might as well give them a reason to talk. But he wasn’t really expecting Akechi to actually get embarrassed at that…

“…Anyway.” Akechi cleared his voice and called to everyone’s attention once they all had composed themselves. “While their demonstration was a little…lacking, they were somewhat correct in their reaction. If someone makes you an offer like that, you absolutely should not engage them. Passing by your local police box and telling them about it, or simply informing your teachers, would be best. Even if there are things you want no matter what, the solution isn’t to try and make easy money!” He reprimanded with a quick wink and a wag of his finger.

“The two of you…um.” He addressed Akira and the girl, but when his gaze directed itself to them, he lost a bit of his composure. “Please go back to your seats. Thank you for agreeing to participate. We’ll need some other volunteers for a few more demonstrations, so are there any other takers?” Akechi then shifted his gaze back to the classroom and all the people volunteering to participate along in the demonstration as Akira returned to his seat.

“Good job at keeping a low profile, Joker.” Morgana said as soon as Joker was in hearing range, giggling right after. Akira silently presented his middle finger to the cat under the desk. He was already feeling embarrassed enough after seeing Akechi’s face like that—but at least he wouldn’t have too much time to deal with it, as he received a message on his phone as soon as he sat down. Maybe the other classrooms actually had something serious.

“Save me, Akechi-kun!” Ann had texted him. He could see her dropping down laughing onto her desk.

He replied with a gun emoji.

\--

After some time, the demonstrations were over, and it was finally time for lunch break. The students were a little bit bolder after Akira and the other girl’s display of shamelessness, but overall everything went smoothly.  Kawakami made sure to stay until most of the students were out of the classroom before talking to Akechi again.

“Akechi-kun, if you want, you can come have lunch in the faculty room. I’m sure the other students will bother you if you stay out in the open.” She offered.

“Oh no, it’s okay. I still have to buy my lunch, after all.” He asserted with his usual smile. Kawakami, on the other hand, simply sighed.

“I thought you had brought your own lunch…you’ll probably have some trouble if you’re hoping to get something at the school store right now. Well, you’re fairly popular among the students, so I’m sure they’ll help you.” Kawakami said, scratching the back of her neck. “Well then, I still have a few things to deal with before my own lunch break, so I’ll get going. Good luck.”

Akechi only nodded at her as she left the classroom. As soon as she had left, a very critical moment happened between the students who were still in the classroom.

The amount of people in the classroom was, naturally, much larger than it used to be. This was, obviously, because some of the people who usually went out to hang out with their friends or buy their lunch stayed in order to make sure they could watch Akechi—and if they were lucky, maybe even talk to him.

Akira knew this intimately. He already expected to not really have any chance of a good reputation after the little incident with Akechi earlier in the day. If he went to talk to the detective during lunch break and spend that time with him, he would most likely be doomed for the rest of his stay at Shujin Academy.

But he, it’s not as if he had THAT much time left.

“Follow me.” Akira said to Akechi as he passed by him. Not really having much else to do, and interested in whatever discussion Akira would bring, Akechi obliged. He observed the younger boy as he made his way to the third floor; unlike the rest of the students, who often just grabbed their lunchboxes and went on their merry way, Akira made sure to carry his entire bag. Most likely for that cat he often saw with him, Akechi thought.

Akira finally stopped at the door to the rooftop, taking a key from one of his pants’ pockets and unlocking it.

“Should I ask why you have that key?” Akechi teased with a playful smile.

“I just happen to help out someone from the gardening club from time to time. There’s nothing more to it.” Akira said. “Don’t tell anyone, though.” He smirked a little bit, or at the very least as much as he could when he wasn’t acting as a Phantom Thief; just that small, crooked side-of-the-mouth wiggle.

“I’d like for the students to feel that they are safe confiding to me.” He said, a little bit of sarcasm to it. “And that includes you.”

“Yes, yes, Mr. Detective Prince. Just go on and take a seat.” Akira said as he sat down on the floor. Akechi, however, took out a small handkerchief and put it on the floor before sitting.

“Really?” Akira asked as the detective sat down. There was a certain point in one’s life where it was simply too much. Akechi had not just passed that point, but in fact ran it over. Twice. On a scooter. Which played a song and did a little noise as it ran the point over.

“Once you live by yourself, Kurusu-kun, you’ll realize the importance of keeping your clothes clean.” The detective said, making himself comfortable as Akira let Morgana out of the bag.

“I may not live by myself, but I do my own laundry. No way Boss would wash it for me.” Akira said. “Oh, and please don’t tell anyone about the cat, either.”

“Don’t worry about it. Let’s just say it’s thanks for allowing me a peaceful lunchtime.” He smiled once he was done speaking. Akira knew exactly how extra that boy was, but it was still undeniable exactly how _cute_ he was, too.

“Anyway, here’s your lunch.” Akira said as he handed a lunchbox to Akechi, who took it, flustered.

“I couldn’t impose on you—“

“Just accept it as thanks for me embarrassing you during the demonstration today.” The dark-haired boy said as he took out another, smaller lunchbox from his bag.

“Kurusu-kun, did you know I was coming today, or do you usually carry a lunch for your friends?” Akechi asked, but Akira only turned to him with a puzzled look on his face.

“What are you talking about? This is for the cat.” He said as he put it down on the floor and opened it. Morgana promptly thanked Akira and got to eating his lunch.

“…You’re rather dedicated to your pet cat, not just bringing it to school but also feeding it while you’re here. I thought you would wait until you got home for that.” Akechi remarked, but Akira didn’t seem particularly impressed.

“Keeping him hungry would be cruel.” Akira shrugged. “Besides, once you live by yourself, Akechi-senpai, you’ll realize the importance of keeping good company.” He said with a tone of sarcasm, but what was most important in that very important sentence wasn’t how smug Akira seemed, but exactly how he addressed Akechi.

When the detective proposed for others to call him senpai, he didn’t think they would actually do it, what with a wide array of nicknames for him in the media; now, the first and most likely only time someone would actually call him that, it just had to be from that boy. His stupid, illogical heart skipped a beat, despite him not wanting it to.

“Aren’t you going to eat?” Akira prodded. The two of them were just talking, and meanwhile, Morgana was almost finishing his own lunch. Akechi hadn’t even opened the lunchbox yet.

“I can’t possibly eat while you starve.”

“Then just eat however much you want and give the rest to me. Being at school probably tires you out more than it does me, so you need the energy.” Akira’s argument was actually rather founded, so the detective couldn’t really argue with it. He took the lid off and started eating with the disposable chopsticks bundled inside.

“Oh, this is rather good.” Akechi commented once he was done chewing, putting a hand to his mouth.

“Thanks. I’m not exactly a good cook, but I know how to make some stuff.” Akira told him, watching him eat. Akechi paused for a bit.

“Kurusu-kun, you made this yourself? I’m surprised.”

“…Who did you think made it? Boss only feeds me breakfast sometimes. The rest of the time I figure something out.” Akira told him so, but he was blowing things a little bit out of proportion. Morgana really wished he could talk right now and tell Akechi about how most of the time this boy was eating a full course of steak at the diner or stuffing his face with the Big Bang Burger challenge, to the point he was so full he barely ever felt the need to eat later.

“I’m sorry if I was rude. I guess I make assumptions too quickly, but I didn’t think of you as the type to know how to cook.” Akechi said, eating some more. “Although that’s partially because my skills at cooking are very basic, haha.”

“What do you even eat for lunch when you’re at work?” Akira asked. Akechi kept up such a well-maintained appearance one would often forget that handling police and student life wasn’t just an accomplishment; it was a burden as well.

“I often don’t get breaks, so I simply order something to eat while I’m working. If I’m doing field work, I simply wait until I’m done or buy some bread.”

“I thought the adults there would scold you for not eating properly or something.”

“Well, they do, from time to time. But even then, my height is appropriate for my age, so I’ll be fine.” He said, handing the lunchbox back to Akira. It still had well over half of the contents in it.

“Barely ate, huh. Show up to Leblanc later and we’ll treat you.” Akira said, putting some food in his mouth. “Isn’t the police business too much for you?” He then shifted the topic.

“What do you mean?”

“It seems like a pretty heavy burden on you. The way you act in public, there’s effort behind it.” Akira said, and then he pointed his chopsticks at Akechi. “Why bother?”

“Why, well…” Akechi was about to answer with the usual keywords and phrases for when he was asked that in talk shows, but he knew it wasn’t appropriate. After all, they were for a different kind of audience than the one he had right now. He spent a moment in silence, wondering how exactly to word it so that he could change the topic, to get Akira off his back in regards to this, to look satisfactory, to _please_ others.

“Thinking too hard?” Akira asked as he munched down on some food. Akechi could only laugh.

“Haha, you really are interesting. People don’t usually bother asking me these kinds of things, even when they notice my answers aren’t fully honest.” He said, and then took a minute to ponder. “It’s true that police work is a burden on me. But despite that, I still have objectives I want to accomplish. Is that answer satisfactory?” Akechi asked.

“Well, is it?” Akira threw the question back at Akechi, and he was taken aback.

“I…I suppose.”

“I’m not too good with words, but what I mean is…I guess you don’t need to try to please me with your answers. Just share however much you want to share, but be honest about it.” Akira said, pondering as he finished eating. “We have time.”

“…I see. Then that answer was enough for me.” Akechi remarked, a warm smile slowly showing itself on his face. “But I must admit, I did want to eat more. It did taste really good, and I don’t remember the last time I had a homecooked meal.” He added, covering his face with his hand. The Detective Prince had his own type of charisma, but the it was nothing in comparison to the cute demeanor of Goro Akechi.

“…Want me to make more for you?” Akira quietly mouthed out as he turned away to put the lunchbox back into his bag. He wasn’t blushing—he most definitely _wasn’t_ —but saying this kind of thing to his crush’s face would still need a bit higher of a Courage status than he had right now.

“I’d be delighted.”


End file.
